What have you done to your Tacoma today? 1st Gen Edition

I tried it once when my temps were in the 208 range due to my thermostat jiggle valve being in the wrong direction. I tried the purple ice additive and it didn't do anything. What are your temps?

After doing the jiggle valve mod I'm now in the 190 range.

 

What is this "jiggle valve mod" you speak of?

 

The jiggle valve on the thermostat should be in the 6:00 position on the 3.4L engines. Mine was installed in the 12:00 position and my temps were in the 208 range as per my ultra guage. I rotated the thermostat so the jiggle valve was in the 6:00 position and it made a 20 degree difference. My temps are now in the 188-192 range.

 

I haven't seen an improvement. I still go over 200+ degrees when I am idling at a light. It drops in the 190 when driving. It runs hotter now with the LCE headers. It's fine for now I'm not traveling far. When I get the extra cash I'll throw on some electric fans to help it out.

 

Makes me think that either the water pump isn't flowing enough coolant, the radiator needs flushing and in worse case the headers need to be wrapped.

 

Well I called LCE and they said not to wrap the headers. So I'm thinking that I need to flush since I haven't done it in a while. But I'll eventually get the fans. As far as the water pump it's on my mind to but dreading having to replace it.

 

I recently replaced my radiator (OEM, nothing upgraded) and installed a 170 degree thermostat from URD. I also did a complete flush with distilled water. When I filled the system back up, I added some purple ice as well. I'm not sure if its the new radiator, the thermostat, the purple ice, or a combination of them all, but my temps are about 10 degrees cooler. I used to stay above 190 (~195) and now I stay below 190 most of the time. It usually stays at 184. I've seen it get up to 193 but once I get moving it drops back down.

 

Maybe I should throw in a new 170 thermostat like yours to see if that helps. It's also been a while since I've changed that too.

 

I can't say for sure if it actually did anything. All I see it doing is opening earlier. The coolant will eventually still reach the same ole temps it usually sees. I dont think it hurts anything though. I already had it with my 7th injector kit so I figured why not. I hadn't replaced mine in a while anyways. I also noticed the 170 thermostat doesn't have the little jiggle valve thing or whatever.

 

Front bumper ordered

 

What size brake drums are on my 00 TRD prerunner? I guess there are two sizes and autozone needs to know what size they are so I can get front brake pads.

 

You coming to PC john?

 

Needs rear drum size to get front pads..... go somewhere alse.

 

All this talk about temperatures has me
1. Itching to buy an UltraGauge
2. Wondering if anyone has installed an aftermarket transmission cooler. I was on the trails last weekend, and after a particularly long ascent, my A/T Oil Temp light came on. My engine was also running pretty hot. So it also has me wondering about engine cooling solutions.

 

Technically its a 1st gen...

 

How far into the 200's does it get? After experiencing my engine running in the 208-212 range I started to hear sounds from the engine that weren't there before. Although I've read that aluminum heads are fine to be at temps of around 230, after experiencing my engine running at 210 for a couple months I don't think these engines perform well at those temps. After researching I found that most engines are running in the high 180's up to high 190's. I was glad to find that the jiggle valve mod did work and my truck is back to normal and gained its power back.

In your case, I'm sure the headers have something to do with the hotter temps. I think as long as your in the 190's while driving you should be good. Also, have you checked your fan clutch? spin it by hand and see if it has some resistance and turns smooth.

 

Wish my first gen had that bed! love the outside roll on those older trucks!

 

So far only up in about 203-204 temps. It use to run in the 185-195 range. I'm going to have to look into that valve mod. And thanks for the info on the fan clutch too. I'll check it out. By the way I have the 2.7 also.

 

You and I both! If I could make one fit my truck it would already be done!